Dream it; Plan it; Live it…then adjust

Month: June 2017

Something you don’t see on the river every day. Where I am staying is where the Atlantic Ocean meets the Savannah River. This is where all the cargo ships enter for the long, narrow journey to the Georgia Port Authority.

This evening, a huge ship came in at low tide and needed the assistance of 2 tugboats. Those little boats are mighty and can maneuver those huge ships. You see them in Savannah assisting with the right turn to the port but I’ve never seen them escorting a ship in. Sometimes they will follow one out to the end of the river, but this was rare. If you look closely, one tug is tied on to the ship’s port side bow and one is following. Very cool. And an even stranger thing, you could hear and feel this ship coming in. This is unusual because I’ve noticed how eerily-quite they are. They are often there before you even notice. Stealthy.
A gloomy day that threatened rain all day. I went in for new toenail color and to wash and vacuum the car. With company this week, we had visited the front beach several times and brought back lots of sand.

The kitty-cats are awaiting someone to take pity on them and throw them some food. The island has a cool “trap, neuter/spay, release” program. We have several outside the condo.

The dolphins were plentiful today. They were very leisurely in their wanderings. They almost appeared in slow motion. ​

The shrimp boat has anchored in for the night so it’s gonna rain. Better than your local weatherman. Every single time!

While my goals for the coming years include a lot of travel, I can’t imagine loving a place more than I love it here.

So I’m on the back side of my summer dream vacation. It has been amazing to live on Tybee for an extended time. It’s been great to have friends and family visit. Those memories are priceless. For the first time in my life, I feel the need to back up my pictures from my phone because they are so special.

Amy and the girls went home today. I’ve cleaned and vacuumed and I have a week left to venture out and discover new Tybee treasures.

I walked the beach tonight. It was breezy and comfortable. I’ll miss my little walks on the beach and being able to dip my toes in the ocean. And yes, those toes are teal blue…a color I would never have tried before but I kind of like it. I’m going for something different each week. Purple next. Life is good. I have great friends and family; my house seems to be moving along to selling; the condo I want is available earlier than originally thought; and I’ve just gotten to experience the vacation I always dreamed of. Truly blessed.

It only takes a day trip into Savannah to realize I prefer the slow, methodical rhythm of the island. It’s very similar to the tranquility of the waves crashing to shore. It’s predictable and there is some serenity to that.

Introduced Amy and the girls to Mrs. Wilkes’ restaurant. Always an hour wait no matter when you go but don’t let the line deter you. It is so very good. And once again, I’m saddened that yet another person (Amy) is 3 times smaller than I am and eats 3 times more than I do. How is that fair? Ok, in all fairness, she is trying very hard to do her 10,000 steps a day. I’m good if I can hang for around 3,000 with them. Have I said this vacation is exhausting?

Saw my future home today!

See that itty-bitty boat behind the yacht…that’s it!
We had dinner at one of my favorites…AJ’s Dockside. The sunset was beautiful and once again I marveled at how pictures just can’t capture the nuance of all the colors. Truly beautiful. If you look close enough, you can see the rays.

And if I could have someone follow me around from now on and cast this glow on me during picture-taking moments, that would be great!

As I have said several times during this vacation…”it wouldn’t do for me to have real money!” I’d be rotten.

ISo tonight’s discussion is “if we’d (the old people) had Internet when we were young, what famous boy would we have lots of pics of on our phones? Amy could remember hers (Kirk Cameron, Bruce Springsteen) but I could only remember one poster (our equivalent) and it was The Bee Gees. Yes, I’m really old!

We started the day cloudy and visiting the south beach where the waves were bigger and then came back to the pool and sunshine. Everyone got a little sun.

Clearly one of Amy’s children has my gene color combination for good melanin. She and I are almost the same color.

Then we went to Paula Deen’s Creek House which is very yummy. Back to let Amy and the girls get in their 10,000 steps.

Amy and daughters

I joined them for the last leg of the walk so we could look for critters. The sun is barely peaking out before it’s final decent. And below is the final night sky.

We sat at the pool and chatted with neighbors and then went down to the dock to talk and a guy caught a baby shark. Nice eventful day. Fun to hang out and build relationships with my people. As I close off tonight I want to ask you to pray for a couple of my friends going through some really crappy family stuff. Lisa and Tammie would move mountains for those they love and are in a bind because only God has control of these situations. Please keep them in your prayers.

Wow! Time is flying. Today started very humid and muggy and ended with a tornado siren. That is NOT what you want to happen while you’re having dinner.

A powerful storm blew in and cooled the island down nicely.

And this is what I learned today…it is REALLY hard to get a picture of lightening with a cell phone camera.
I walked the beach after the storm and noticed a ship coming in and one going out. Notice anything?

I don’t remember my high school economics class (did I even have one?) but it appears that we are exporting more than we are importing. That’s good, right?
And this cute little egret reminded me of an old man with his black socks all pulled up. Cute!

Another friend (Amy) and her daughters show up tonight so I’m relaxing before exhaustion sets in again.

Boy, it was “fry an egg on the pavement” hot today. Even the pool was little relief…bath water warm. I did my usual hour with lots of sunscreen and then needed a nap from all that hard work.

Still using 30 spf on my legs, 50 spf on chest and shoulders, and 70 spf on my face. Thanks again to Rebecca for the recommendation of Sun Bum sunscreen…it really is good. Here’s one thing I’ve learned…my toenail polish will not hold up to sunscreen…makes it gloopy. I do have enough sun to routinely go out in public with shorts and sleeveless tops, which is good because it is sweltering hot.

Checked out a movie at the cute little Tybee theater. Saw the new Baywatch because it was largely filmed on Tybee. Predictable outcome adventure movie with WAY too much cussing. This is NOT the movie to take your children to see unfortunately. I’ve seen more than my share of manly parts (yes, those parts!) for a solo vacation. But any time you can watch Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is a good time.
Just so I never forget how lucky I am…another beautiful nightfall.

The Georgia sun is hot, hot, hot! As I am trying to parcel my sun days wisely, I ventured into Wilmington Island (which is weird because it evidently isn’t actually an “island” at all) and roamed and explored.

As I am from a town that has a large Hispanic population, Mexican food is at a premium. Therefore, it isn’t easy to find good Mexican food just anywhere. As I was exploring, I found a Mexican restaurant and decided to do something other than seafood for a change. It was good!

It’s no Los Reyes (best salsa ever) but a nice change of pace.

Bingo on the island was in store for the evening. As is always my way, I happen to sit at a table with a teacher (retired). She (Elaine) was delightful and very helpful. I didn’t win money but I did win a new connection.

Two weeks left and then home to hopefully an uneventful move and onto a new chapter of my life. Minimalism is my new goal. I’ve done very well downsizing in the last few years. I want to travel more and have less things to hold me back. Night all from Tybee Island.

The clouds lifted today and the sun returned. Lisa and the girls went home and I’m already planning for my next visitors. Couple of friends from work and some family will close out the stay on Tybee. It’s been relaxing and exhausting, busy and boredom, sunny and rainy…and always hot! Georgia summers. Whew!

Last night when we went to dinner (Lighthouse Pizza), the waitress recognized me! That’s either good or bad, depending on your perspective. I’m going with good! I felt “part” of the island at that moment. And it is one of my favorite places.

The rental agency delivered a brand new vacuum to me today so I could tidy up and I found a Kroger on Wilmington Island. There’s only one small IGA on the island so it was a nice familiar find.

Another beautiful end to a nice day. My life is so blessed. I try to remind myself of that daily and be thankful for this opportunity. It’s been nice to relax and spend time with family and friends. Great memories.

It has been a whirlwind few days. Lisa and the girls (3 teenagers) arrived on Monday and we’ve been busy every moment since.

Lots of walking the beach, shell hunting, and showing off “my island” to new people. Love that. It’s been cloudy and rainy…not so great for the girls but great for me as I’ve gotten a lot of sun already.

We ate at Paula Deen’s Creekhouse. Wonderful food and atmosphere. Great little homey yard out back where you can hang out on the swing and watch the kids play. Pretty.

And then the girls went to the pier and beach for a few hours while Lisa and I spent some time catching up.

Then off to The Crab Shack for the next evening which is an essential if you’re visiting the area. The atmosphere is phenomenal.

Off to Savannah today. Whew! I’m exhausted. These people will have to go home for me to recuperate.
The most beautiful Catholic church and magnificent fountain at Forsythe Park.

And my new motto:

Now trying to think about the next stage of my summer…the moving part. I feel like it’s moving along nicely.

It’s weird that leaving home made me realize where home is. Funny how that works. Don’t get me wrong, Tybee is amazing. Love this place. But I miss my people. I’ve wondered if I will miss my house. Technically, when I left it for this adventure I knew it very probably wouldn’t be “mine” when I came back. Most of my stuff has been packed up and I’m looking forward to living IN Dalton and a whole lot less maintenance.

On this Father’s Day, I reflect on my own father. Technically he’s a man that didn’t have to take on a woman with 2 children already. But he did and gave us more than his name…he gave us his time; his outlook on the world beyond the small town we’d grown up in; his love for all things intellectual; a faith that all things were doable if you tried hard enough; and a love for my mother even when she didn’t love herself.

As everyone else gets older, he doesn’t seem to age. He is the line that anchors my balloon. I know that no matter how high I fly, he will always be there to at least soften the landing when I crash…and I have done some major crashing over the years. He is s moral compass that I can’t fathom living up to. Recently, my aunt (his sister) reminded me that “after all, he’s just a man!” Yes, but what a mighty man he is!

On this day, I hope you’ve honored those men in your life that anchor you and teach you to soar. It’s the ultimate parenting balance act.

Tomorrow my friend Lisa joins me on Tybee. She and I were instant friends some 3 or 4 years ago and I am blessed to have her in my life. It has been said that if you can have 1 or 2 people in your life that you can always count on, you’re lucky. I am a very lucky woman indeed.

As I take my evening walk tonight, I wonder who affords this? But then I realize we have the same view and isn’t that what is most important?